1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a plurality of electric cells (i.e., a battery cell) and a battery assembly (i.e., a battery module), in which the electric cells are electrically connected in the form of a module.
2. Description of the Related Art
An external terminal of one of electric cells constituting a battery assembly is electrically connected to an external terminal of another electric cell disposed adjacently via a conductive member such as a bus bar (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. 2003-86219 and 2009-266614).
When an external terminal or a connecting rod for connecting the external terminal to a power generating element housed inside of an electric cell is accidentally brought into contact with, for example, a metallic tool in assembling a battery assembly, short-circuiting occurs. Use of a jig to prevent such short-circuiting requires a process for attaching or detaching the jig, thereby degrading assembling performance.